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11-year-old avoids attempted abduction after asking for ‘code word’

SAN TAN VALLEY, Ariz. (WHDH) — A man who tried luring an 11-year-old girl into his car in Arizona Wednesday drove off after she asked about a “code word.”

Pinal County sheriffs responding to a home in the North Pecan Creek neighborhood around 3:45 p.m. learned that a man driving a white SUV pulled up to the young girl and told her that her brothers were in a serious accident and she needed to go with him, the sheriff’s office said.

The child asked the man what the “code word’ was but he did not know it, so he drove off.

“Kudos to the parents of this child for having a code word and talking about to their children about stranger danger,” said Sheriff Mark Lamb. “We hope by putting this out, it will encourage parents to have that conversation and create a plan with their children, so they know what to do if they are in that situation.”

Children in the neighborhood told the sheriffs that they have seen the same SUV circling the park several times a day.

The suspect is described as a white male, possibly in his 40s, with a short beard.

Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 520-866-5111.

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